California Proclaimed Part of the United States
The proclamation of California as part of the United States stems from a complex historical context involving American expansionism, the Mexican-American War, and local dynamics in California. Initially, American settlement in California began in the early 1840s, with only a small number of Americans residing among a larger population of Mexicans and Native Americans. In 1846, during escalating tensions between the United States and Mexico, an American naval officer claimed California for the U.S. as part of a broader ambition known as "manifest destiny."
This period saw significant military and political maneuvering, leading to the Bear Flag Revolt, where American settlers declared California's independence amid confusion and power struggles among Mexican leaders. The subsequent arrival of U.S. military forces, under Commodore John Sloat, solidified American control when he raised the American flag in Monterey and promised to respect the rights of locals. Over the following months, conflict ensued until the Treaty of Cahuenga was signed in January 1847, effectively securing California's transition to American governance. This pivotal moment in history highlights the intersection of military action, local insurgency, and national ambition during a transformative period for California and the United States.
California Proclaimed Part of the United States
California Proclaimed Part of the United States
Large numbers of Americans did not arrive in California, a province of Mexico, until the colonization of the San Joaquin Valley began in 1843. Even by 1846, only about 500 Americans had settled among the 8,000 to 12,000 Mexicans of Spanish descent and 24,000 Native Americans in the area. Nevertheless, American interest in this large and fertile Mexican province was great. Shortly after the Mexican War erupted, an American naval officer claimed California for the United States on July 7, 1846.
Throughout the 1840s, Americans were eager to add California to the Union. In 1842 Commodore Thomas Catesby Jones, incorrectly believing that the United States and Mexico were at war and that a British fleet was ready to seize California, set sail from the coast of Peru. Jones landed at Monterey and raised the American flag there on October 20, 1842, before the United States consul in Monterey (Thomas O. Larkin) advised him that the two nations were still at peace. Commodore Jones promptly lowered the flag, President John Tyler apologized to Mexico, and the United States made reparations.
James K. Polk, who succeeded Tyler as president, was much more aggressive in pursuing the expansion of the United States to the Pacific Ocean in fulfillment of its “manifest destiny.” In October 1845 Polk appointed Thomas Larkin as confidential agent with the assignment of encouraging Californians to join the Union or at least to declare independence under the protection of the United States. Polk's hopes for California soon came to fruition, thanks to the efforts of John Charles Frémont and to the outbreak of war with Mexico.
Undertaking his third important government exploring expedition, Frémont, then a young brevet captain in the United States Topographical Corps, reached the California frontier in December 1845 and camped near Sutter's Fort. From Sutter's Fort, Frémont traveled with a single companion to Monterey, more than 100 miles to the south. Monterey was the headquarters of General Jos‗ Castro, the military commandant of California. Meeting with Castro, Frémont received what seemed to be the commandant's tacit approval for his expedition to remain in California, reprovision themselves, and explore further. In February 1846, Frémont's expedition camped some 13 miles southeast of San Jos‗, roughly midway between San Francisco and Monterey. All was quiet until late February, when the expedition moved on towards the main settlements of the province, including Monterey. Keeping east and inland of that center, Frémont camped some 25 miles from Monterey, near Salinas. The movements of his well-armed band alarmed the Mexican authorities, and Castro ordered the Frémont Party out of the area. Angered, Frémont refused, raising the American flag and standing his ground for three days on nearby Hawk's Peak in the Gabilan Mountains. When Castro prepared to attack with his superior forces, Frémont decided to withdraw.
Frémont reached Klamath Lake on the Oregon frontier by May 9, 1846, when Marine Lieutenant Archibald H. Gillespie reached him with what may have been secret orders. In any case, Frémont and his expedition returned to California immediately, where they camped on the Sacramento River, not far from Sutter's Fort.
As Frémont approached, the Mexican leaders in California, who had long been feuding, were at odds over the issue of revolution with Mexico. Castro announced his support for General Mariano Paredes, who had deposed Jos‗ Herrera as president of Mexico. However, the civil governor of Mexican California, Pío Pico, responded by calling for a general council in Santa Barbara. It was widely thought that the purpose of this council would be to proclaim California's independence and place it under the protection of a foreign government such as Great Britain or France. In response to this internal challenge, Castro diverted his attention from the Americans and dispatched forces against Pico's headquarters at Los Angeles. Castro also ranged up and down northern California in a troop-raising effort designed to meet threats from any quarter, foreign or domestic.
With Frémont's encouragement, American settlers in the Sacramento Valley took advantage of Castro's preoccupation, seizing the opportunity to attack a Castro force on June 10, 1846. On June 14, 1846, another American Party captured Sonoma, north of San Francisco. With their unanimous consent, one of the settlers, William B. Ide, drew up a proclamation declaring the independence of the American settlements. The insurgents claimed that the Mexicans had promised them lands and a republican form of government, but had instead imposed a dictatorship and forbidden them to buy or rent land.
William L. Todd, a nephew of Mary Todd Lincoln, designed a flag for the newly proclaimed Republic of California. The flag had a white field with the name of the republic, a picture of a grizzly bear, and a star. Not surprisingly, historians came to call the uprising the Bear Flag Revolt. Frémont himself reached Sonoma on June 25, 1846, and shortly thereafter became the leader of the Bear Flag republic.
The life of the fledgling California republic was short, however, for the Mexican War quickly brought American military intervention to the area. Commodore John D. Sloat, the commander of the United States Navy's Pacific Squadron, was anchored off Mazatlán on Mexico's west coast. He had learned by late May 1846 that war had broken out in Texas between the United States and Mexico. Acting on standing orders for such a development, Sloat set sail for California on June 8, 1846. Sloat's flagship, the Savannah, arrived at Monterey on July 2, 1846.
On July 7, 1846 Commodore Sloat sent Captain William Mervine with 250 marines and seamen ashore to claim California for the United States. Sloat raised the American flag and issued a proclamation that was read to the populace in both Spanish and in English. He guaranteed the civil and religious rights of persons who accepted American authority, and allowed those who chose to refuse it to either remain neutral or to leave. Those who decided to depart would receive time to sell their property. Sloat promised to not interfere with existing real estate titles or the property of the clergy, and announced that the military would take no private property without giving just compensation. Several months of conflict followed throughout California, and there was tension between the leaders of the different American forces involved, but eventually the Americans defeated the Mexicans. The Treaty of Cahuenga of January 13, 1847, provided for the withdrawal of Mexican forces from California.